Windshield wiper arm



June 13, 1939. J, l. LINER WINDSHIELD WIPER ARM Filed Feb. 26, 19-37 INVENTOR JOSEPH L/A/Ee av f ATTORNEYS Patented June 13, 1939 v 1 2,161,965

UNITED STATES PATENT oF cE I 246L965 l V f WINDSHIELD WIPER ARM Joseph I. Linen Toledo, Ohio, assignor to'lhe Orion Electric Company, Wilmington, DeL, a

corporation of Delaware I Application February 26, new, Serial No. 127,825 4 Claims. (c1. 15 2 55) This invention relates to windshield wipers, Figure 3 is a perspective View, partly cut away,

more particularly to a windshield wiper arm; :showing details of the construction.

This invention contemplates the provision oi-a Figure-4 is a sectional elevational View, showwindshield wiper,,the arm of which is adapted 'ing the arm in detached relation.

5 to drive a squeegee across the'surface of the glass Figure 5 is a view taken along the line 5-5 of 5 of a windshield, and which may be attached to Figure 1. the oscillating driver shaft'of a wiper motor of Figure 6 is a sectional elevational view, showany suitable type such as, for example, an electric ing an angular displacement of the parts. motor, without'the use of any tools. The Wiper Referring to the drawing, particularly to Fig- 10 arm contemplated is a compact unit in which all ure 1, there is shown a driving shaft In which has 10 the essential parts are mounted closely together a non-circular terminus MA to which a unitary in operable juxtaposition so that the arm may be connection, indicated generally by I l, is at placed in position on thedriver shaft by an untached for driving a windshield Wiper arm 12. skilled person with a minimum of annoyance; A motor of any desirable design not shown) may It isftherefore; an object of this invention to be provided to drive the shaft Iii, preferably a 15 provide a windshield wiper arm that may be atmotor having an oscillatory motion will be used. tached to and detached from a driver shaft with The. windshield wiper arm I2 is provided at its out the use of any tools. lower end by any convenient device such as, for It is a further object of this invention to proexample, a hook 3 to which a squeegee (not vide a windshield wiper arm adapted for con shown) is attached to cooperate with a wind-" '20 venient attachment to a driver shaft in which the shield (also not shown) to clean the same. means for creating a lateral thrust on the wiper The shaft Ill and its non-circular terminus ifiA arm to hold the squeegee in close contact with provides a driving member which cooperates with the glass, are held together in convenient juxta- .a conforming non-circular aperture it in a position to allow the wiper arm to be attached driven member I5, preferably in the nature of 25 to the driver shaft without having the parts sepa plate. The driven member l5 and the wiper arating and causing inconvenience. arm !2 are provided with a casing I6; the driven, It is a further object of' this invention to promember l5 and the wiper arm l2 being attached vide a connecting mechanism between a motor thereto by any convenient means as, for example,

and a windshield squeegee, in which the power is by a rivet i? which threads through an aper- 3O transmitted by conforming non-circular parts ture in the driven member I5 and an eye l8 which are adapted for connection together by .formed on the endof the wiper arm l2, The simple operations withoutthe use of tools, and at p arm I? nd t e d n me ber are further the" same time allow limited relative movement held in position within the casing by means of between the parts so that the squeegee maybe apertures in thesides of the casing cooperating lifted from the windshield for cleaning the glass with the respective parts. An aperture 55A is thereof without separating the parts of the conprovided at the upper end of the casing, being 'necting mechanism. generally in the shape of rectangle to conform Other objects andadvantages'of this invention withv the dimensions of the driven member I5,

40 relating to the arrangement, operation and funcwhile on the opposite end of. the casing, a cir- 40 tion of the related elements of. the structure, to cular opening 12A is provided to cooperate with various details of construction, to combinations the circular cross-section of the wiper arm l2. of parts and to economies of manufacture, will A thirdmember 5 is prov d d t COOIJBIatE with be apparent to those skilled in the art upon conthe non-circular terminus WA and is adapted .to

sideration'of the following description and apmove in a plane parallel with and displaced from 45 pended claims, reference being had to the accomthe driven memher'l5. A nod-circular aperture panying drawing forming a part of this'specifiit is provided in the third member 26 which is cation wherein like reference characters desigadapted to embrace and to conform to the nonnate corresponding parts in the several views, circular terminus WA of the driving shaft. De-

Figure 1 is a sectional elevationalvi'ew, showing p s e 22 ar p ovid d to form a channel- 50 the wiper arm in operable position on a driver shaped structure, the upper ends of the sides of shaft. the channel being provided with inwardly struck Figure2 is a View taken along the line 22.of tongues 23 which cooperate with one side of the Figure 1 with parts ornitted'to show 'thealigndriven member l5. Each dependingside of the ment of the non-circular apertures. channel-shaped member is also provided with a 55 the aperture 2| in the third member may be aligned as is clearly shown in Figure 2 so that the non-circular terminus IDA of the driving shaft ID may be threaded through both, the conforming sides of the apertures and the non-circular terminus IDA forming a driving connection between the shaft ID and the wiper arm I2. To keep the apertures I4 and 2I. out of align-' ment as shown in Figure 4, a resilient means in thenature of a helical spring is provided which is attached by a loop at the one endto the third member'ZD by engaging the aperture 2I while the opposite end is provided with. a loop which is threaded in an aperture 26 in the end of the casing.

the casing acts as a stop means tolimit the movement of the third member 20. V

The wiper arm is placed in operable position on the driver shaft ID by first threading the noncircular terminus IDA through the aperture 2| in the third member 20, and then applying a force to the casing I6 in a direction to align the apertures 2I and I4 which will allow the non-circular terminus IDA to thread the aperture I4 and assume the position shown in Figure 1.

To hold the wiper armin operable position on the driver shaft I.D, a notch IDB is provided on the lower side of the non-circular terminus IDA of the v shaft, the slot being provided with oblique sides which will allow the driven member I5 to oscillate aboutthe bottom of the slot. Due to the action of the resilient means 25 'on the third member 2D,

the slot IDB will at all times during normal operation cooperate with the bottom of the slot IDB substantially as shown in Figures 1 and 6.

The tension of the resilient means 25 acting through the third member 20 at a point displaced fromthe point of cooperation between the slot I03 and the aperture I4 will give rise to a moment tending to turnthe wiper arm I2 in a counterclockwise direction as shown in Figure 1, assuming that the shaft ID remains fixed. This tension normally'thrusts the squeegee, which is attached .to the hook I3, against the glass of the windshield wiper shaft I 2, would be displaced'until the driven member I5 engages the obliques'ide of the slot IDB. This action further advances thethird member 20 along the driven member I5 and 7 increases the tension upon the resilient means 25.

To prevent thenon-circular terminus IDA from engaging the casing, a chamfer IDCis provided at j its forward end. During the'use of the wiper arm,

this angular displacement between the driven lrnember I5 and the shaft ID is often necessary.

The helical spring 25 at all times urges the third member 20 toward the rivet II which with.

For examplefwhen an operator is cleaning the windshield, it is necessary .to lift the squeegee and the wiper arm I2 from the surface of the glass to facilitate the cleaning operation.

To remove the wiper arm from the shaft, it is necessary to reverse the operation of attaching. In other words, a downward force is applied to the wiper arm in Figure 1 to advance the non-circular terminus IDA upwardly in the aperture I4 so that the aperture may be disengaged from the slot IDB.

Then by pulling outwardly (to the left in Figure 1), the non-circular terminus IDA'of the shaft, may be removed from the threading relation with V the apertures I4 and 2I and so remove the device from the shaft ID.- This will allow the resilient I means 25 to pull the' third member 20 to the position shown substantially in Figure 4. It is to be understood that the above detaile description of the present invention is intended to disclose an embodiment thereof to those skilled in the art, but that the invention isnot'to be construed as limited in its application to the details of construction'and arrangement of parts 11'- lustrated in the accompanying drawing, since the invention is capable of being practiced and carried out in various ways without departing from ployed for purposes of description and not of limitation, and it is not intended to limit the scope of the following claims beyond the requirements of the prior art.

Iclaim:

1. In a windshield wiper arm, a non-circular drivingmember, a driven member having a noncircular aperture to cooperate with the noncircular driving member adapted to allow relative movement in a predetermined plane and to transmit power between the driving member and the driven member, slidable guide means on the. driven member having a portion adapted for, longitudinal movement in spaced relation with the driven member, said portion being provided with an aperture to embrace the driving member at a point displaced from the, point'of cooperation between the driving member and the driven member, and resilient means acting between the guide means and the driven member tending to pull the apertures in the guide means and'the driven member out of alignment whereby a turning moment is created tendingto move the driven member in the predetermined plane.

2. In a device of the class described, a noncircular driving member, a driven member with a non-circular aperture to cooperate with the 7 driving member and adapted to transmit power therebetween, a sliding plate cooperating with the driven member and adapted to move in spaced parallel relation therewith andprovided with an aperture to embrace the driving member'in lon- .gitudinal spacedrelation with the non-circular aperture on the driving member, means to restrain disengagement of the driving member from between, a channel-shapedmember .cooperatin'g f circular driving member to transmit power therewith the driven member, the side members of the channel-shaped member being adapted to slide longitudinally thereon to move the base thereof in spaced parallel relation with the driving member, an aperture in the base of the channelshaped member to embrace the driving member, resilient means acting on the channel-shaped member to restrain the alignment of the apertures in the driven member and the base of the 10 channel-shaped member to create a turning m0- ment tending to rotate the wiper arm with reference to the driving member, and means to restrain disengagement of the driving member from the driven member.

4. The device defined in claim 3 further characterized by having the casing, the driven member and the wiper arm held as a unit by a single 

